If only U2/Edge had followed the instrumental path ...

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Axver

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I'm just listening to some U2/Edge instrumentals from the UF --> JT period, most notably U2's Bass Trap and Edge's Rowena's Theme from the Captive soundtrack (I'm sure all of you are shocked! :wink: ), and I'm yet again struck by the beauty of these songs. I love the soothing and beautiful atmospheres, the delicate touches, the feelings of calm and peacefulness, and how it's simply quite ethereal and gorgeous.

I do wish U2 had explored this area of music more. I know it leaves Bono out in the cold a bit, but he's more of a guitarist than people give him credit for (well, maybe he wasn't back in 1985!), and honestly, I'm not all too fussed if it leaves him sitting around twiddling his thumbs. He'd figure out something to do eventually.

U2 probably could have come out with an instrumental album between UF and JT. There was enough material: Bass Trap, Boomerang I, Sixty Seconds In Kingdom Come, an untitled instrumental that has leaked online, and 4th Of July could have been saved too, not to mention all of the material of Edge's on the Captive soundtrack. I wonder if there's more in the vault that just wasn't released - that's not unusual for U2.

If I could have just one thing from U2, it would be more music in the vein of The Unforgettable Fire, The Joshua Tree, the Captive soundtrack, and b-sides from that era. U2 were on a stunning creative high in those years and I wish more of it had been released. My mouth waters just thinking about what may be lying around, considering what has leaked in various ways - Beautiful Ghost, My Time Hasn't Come, She's A Mystery To Me, Wild Irish Rose. Some of it, if released, would be commercial suicide, but it would be artistic and atmospheric bliss. We need more of that.
 
I wouldn't say no to a few more instrumental tracks in the future, but I can't really imagine instrumentals being much fun live... (for me, anyway)
 
PINK IS THE NEW BLACK

more instrumentals
better lyrics
less shit
less larry's opinion
more guitars
more bono screams
more sex
more fancy clothes and purple guitars
tv sets and bald blonde hairdos
reload
 
Axver, I'm severely creeped out. :ohmy: I was going to make a post exactly like this, regarding UF instrumentals, this morning. Some of it really was exciting. U2 honestly needs to do more instrumental pieces. I don't think they'd ever entertain the idea these days but it would be amazing if they did. Bono might get bored, but it would at least give him a chance to improve his guitar skills. :wink: And there are even interesting things he can do with his voice without the use of lyrics.

Out of all the instrumental tracks they released during the UF period, that untitled one really stands out to me. Everyone should listen to it:

http://s57.you sendit.com/d.aspx?id=031IBQ697HBPQ0OUYGT4USIAJH

I wish I had a better quality version of it. But anyway, just listen to what Edge was doing on that guitar of his. It's almost as experimental as anything you'd hear on either of the albums from the nineties, just with that 80s sound. I'm certain Edge still has this sort of creativity in him somewhere...
 
GibsonGirl said:

Out of all the instrumental tracks they released during the UF period, that untitled one really stands out to me. Everyone should listen to it:

http://s57.you sendit.com/d.aspx?id=031IBQ697HBPQ0OUYGT4USIAJH

It sounds for me like a very early version of Bullet The Blue Sky.
 
Zooropean103 said:


It sounds for me like a very early version of Bullet The Blue Sky.

I don't hear Bullet in that at all. :shrug: Edge uses slide guitar, yes, but that's it.
 
hcbiggs2002 said:
Didn't U2 already come out with, what I would cetainly call, an instrumental album under the name of Passengers?! And we all know how well that went down!!?!:huh:

If they released it under the name U2, as they should have, I think it would have done a hell of a lot better.
 
Not impressed with that song by the way. Obviously it is only a demo, but to me it is an example of why "experimental" isn't always good.
 
Axver, it would have been interesting if U2 would have put out an atmospheric instrumental album in the mid-80s. How about creating a UF-like atmospheric compilation of songs?

1. Beautiful Ghost
2. Wild Irish Rose
3. Walk To The Water (This song has always sounded to me like UF-like track)
4. Tomorrow (The 1996 Bono & Adam version - I don’t know if this would fit?)
5. Heartland (I don’t know if this would fit? but I read an interview with Daniel Lanois in which he recalled how this track was originally from the UF Sessions and it was titled Tokyo)
6. Promenade (In a way, I see this as the center point track. How well could a compilation flow into it and out it?)
7. Love Comes Tumbling
8. Slug (I don’t know if this would fit? but I see it as the 90s twin sister version of Love Comes Tumbling)
9. Woman (aka Sick For Love or Back Mask from the Salome Outtakes – I pieced both together to form one track)
10. Elvis Presley And America
11. My Time Hasn’t Come (a JT Tour sound check composition)
12. Smile (Atomic Bomb outtake – I just thought of this one – an excellent tune – would it go better here or after Tomorrow?)
13. She’s A Mystery To Me (It would be nice to have a complete version by U2 – a quiet studio version – a more atmospheric version)

2 of the last tracks, “Time” and “Mystery” have a kind of country vibe going on. These are 2 other tracks in that vein:

Slow Dancing (a 1997 version but with Bono on vocals instead)
Dreaming With Tears In My Eyes
 
GibsonGirl said:


If they released it under the name U2, as they should have, I think it would have done a hell of a lot better.

Maybe! But just the other day listened to the cd that came with the Total Guitar edition that had The Edge interview. On it they had two versions of 'Beautiful Day', one where you could only hear Edges guitar and the other where you only hear Larry and Adam and the backing vocals. And it struck me that, although I appreciated the fine musicianship of Edge, Larry and Adam, it lacked the life and soul and passion that Bonos vocals and lyrics brings to this song. And I think the same could probably be said about most of U2 songs.:eyebrow:
 
hcbiggs2002 said:


Maybe! But just the other day listened to the cd that came with the Total Guitar edition that had The Edge interview. On it they had two versions of 'Beautiful Day', one where you could only hear Edges guitar and the other where you only hear Larry and Adam and the backing vocals. And it struck me that, although I appreciated the fine musicianship of Edge, Larry and Adam, it lacked the life and soul and passion that Bonos vocals and lyrics brings to this song. And I think the same could probably be said about most of U2 songs.:eyebrow:

Can you share those 2 tracks from Total Guitar?
 
Axver I completely agree with you :yes:

if U2 explored the whole atmospheric feel and done more instrumentals.. :drool:
the possibilities are endless. it's obvious to say that they would have made progress if they did explore the area a bit more (especially with Eno around).

thanks for the link to the untitled track GibsonGirl. :up:
 
I'd love to see more intrumentals as well. I love Endless Deep (does that one count?), Race Against Time, and the two Boomerangs.

So, who's going to start the petition for this one? :wink:
 
im not particularily fond of the instrumentals

the only one i really like is alex descends
 
I'd love to just hear more Edge. Assuming there's no Edge instrumental/solo anything on the horizon for some time, I'd love to hear U2 let him loose, let his guitar take over from Bono more to tell the story. Think about a couple of songs like Velvet Dress, and especially Love is Blindness. If you just completely subbed Bono out, made those instrumentals, they still completely and totaly convey the correct emotion, place you in the exact same time and place. The list of songs I've heard where a guitar part conveys a feeling as well as Edge does in Love is Blindness would be a very short one, after a very long time thinking. There hasn't been enough Edge of late. Instrumental gets the big thumbs up from me as well, but there's absolutely zero chance of that happening.
 
GibsonGirl said:
Axver, I'm severely creeped out. :ohmy: I was going to make a post exactly like this, regarding UF instrumentals, this morning.

:creepy: :ohmy:

Out of all the instrumental tracks they released during the UF period, that untitled one really stands out to me.

It would really help if it had a title, much like the Fan Working Titles of the Axtung Beibi Out-takes or My Time Hasn't Come, Be There, We Love You, et cetera. I guess the problem is the lack of lyrics. I think it has a very Indian Summer Sky/Bullet feel - I don't mean it sounds LIKE them, but I think it has a similar atmosphere, dark and forbidding. If ever a title were created, it should reflect that.

hcbiggs2002 said:
Didn't U2 already come out with, what I would cetainly call, an instrumental album under the name of Passengers?! And we all know how well that went down!!?!:huh:

Uhh ... have you played it lately? There's a few instrumental songs, but plenty of songs with vocals, including Pavarotti! Only five or so of the fourteen tracks lack vocals.

I also think Passengers is absolutely gorgeous. I've been listening to that single album more lately than everything else by U2 combined.

Earnie Shavers said:
I'd love to just hear more Edge. Assuming there's no Edge instrumental/solo anything on the horizon for some time, I'd love to hear U2 let him loose, let his guitar take over from Bono more to tell the story. Think about a couple of songs like Velvet Dress, and especially Love is Blindness. If you just completely subbed Bono out, made those instrumentals, they still completely and totaly convey the correct emotion, place you in the exact same time and place. The list of songs I've heard where a guitar part conveys a feeling as well as Edge does in Love is Blindness would be a very short one, after a very long time thinking. There hasn't been enough Edge of late. Instrumental gets the big thumbs up from me as well, but there's absolutely zero chance of that happening.

YES. You're totally right. That haunting, devastating Love Is Blindness solo is the heart and soul of the song. Bono's vocals are little more than an extra. Another song that I think is perfectly summed up by Edge is Acrobat: all you need to hear is the bleak solo and you have a solid grasp on the song. Also, Bottoms (Watashitachi No Ookima Yume) is a pretty nice demonstration of how well Zoo Station survives without vocals - in fact, I prefer Bottoms to Zoo Station!

I wish U2 would experiment more with creating sweeping sonic landscapes. The Unforgettable Fire, the song, is a great case in point, especially live versions. The most haunting and vivid part of the song is Edge's solo and Larry thundering on the drums. A couple of bootlegs of exceptionally good quality capture this in all its magic. I'd like to hear U2 create more music like that - stuff that goes beyond mere musical notes and paints visual art in the listener's mind.
 
U2Soar said:
Axver, it would have been interesting if U2 would have put out an atmospheric instrumental album in the mid-80s. How about creating a UF-like atmospheric compilation of songs?

1. Beautiful Ghost
2. Wild Irish Rose
3. Walk To The Water (This song has always sounded to me like UF-like track)
4. Tomorrow (The 1996 Bono & Adam version - I don’t know if this would fit?)
5. Heartland (I don’t know if this would fit? but I read an interview with Daniel Lanois in which he recalled how this track was originally from the UF Sessions and it was titled Tokyo)
6. Promenade (In a way, I see this as the center point track. How well could a compilation flow into it and out it?)
7. Love Comes Tumbling
8. Slug (I don’t know if this would fit? but I see it as the 90s twin sister version of Love Comes Tumbling)
9. Woman (aka Sick For Love or Back Mask from the Salome Outtakes – I pieced both together to form one track)
10. Elvis Presley And America
11. My Time Hasn’t Come (a JT Tour sound check composition)
12. Smile (Atomic Bomb outtake – I just thought of this one – an excellent tune – would it go better here or after Tomorrow?)
13. She’s A Mystery To Me (It would be nice to have a complete version by U2 – a quiet studio version – a more atmospheric version)

2 of the last tracks, “Time” and “Mystery” have a kind of country vibe going on. These are 2 other tracks in that vein:

Slow Dancing (a 1997 version but with Bono on vocals instead)
Dreaming With Tears In My Eyes

:hmm: I quite like the flow of that. Heartland, definitely: that was originally going to be on JT, though it did evolve a tad before being released on RAH. I'm not so sure I'd include Tomorrow. Maybe remove it and have Walk To The Water --> Promenade --> Heartland?

What I would like to see included is Heartland --> Bass Trap --> A Sort Of Homecoming, with ASOH being a studio version of how it was played live (i.e. WAIA). The flow of those three songs is absolutely extraordinary.

I must say I really like your use of My Time Hasn't Come --> Smile --> She's A Mystery To Me. Beautiful Ghost --> Wild Irish Rose is another good one. I've actually always felt Slug had a Wild Irish Rose kind of vibe going, but I'm not sure why.

(Also, I haven't heard Dreaming With Tears In My Eyes. :reject: )
 
As much as it will pain me to see U2 stop being U2, I can't wait to see what seperate ways the members will go. I see the Edge doing his own thing, with Adam and Larry branching out with others, but still working on stuff together.

Fuck Bono. He's always been my least favorite member of the bunch. But really, fuck singers in general.
 
:up: to the instrumental song. Usually I find that most unreleased U2 songs are unreleased for a reason, but this has a nice progressive flavor to it. Wish they'd done something with this on album.
 
hcbiggs2002 said:
Didn't U2 already come out with, what I would cetainly call, an instrumental album under the name of Passengers?! And we all know how well that went down!!?!:huh:

Fucking brilliantly. Never, ever gets dull. A shame it's type will probably never be heard again.
 
I also think the unreleased instrumental turned into Bullet The Blue Sky, sounds like it's instrumental sibling. I also like Viva Davidoff but then I like ambient music too.
 
hcbiggs2002 said:
You all obviously misunderstood me! I personally think Passengers is a fine album. My point was, that the album wasn't much of a success outside U2s hardcore fan base. :eyebrow:

I suspect the marketing had a lot to do with that. If it had been publicised by people screaming from the rooftops "U2 RELEASE FIRST POST-ZOOTV ALBUM!!!!", the general public would've been a lot more interested in that than some disc that showed up without fireworks and politely introduced itself as a band combining U2 and Brian Eno and various guests.
 
Axver said:


I suspect the marketing had a lot to do with that. If it had been publicised by people screaming from the rooftops "U2 RELEASE FIRST POST-ZOOTV ALBUM!!!!", the general public would've been a lot more interested in that than some disc that showed up without fireworks and politely introduced itself as a band combining U2 and Brian Eno and various guests.

I remember reading an NME interview w/ Bono from 1995, right befor the album hit.

They didn't call it a U2 record because they feared it would put off fans expecting a U2 record. And it wasn't a U2 record.

If only Radiohead had the same sense when releasing Kid A and Amnesiac.
 
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Passengers is not a u2 album to me, it's Brian Eno's album. U2 appear on it.

Never enjoyed passengers that much...I'll put it in late night sometimes cause it's good for that, but that's about it.

really want Edge and Adam to dominate this record, Adam's bass work has just gotten better and better. Let both of them delve into some new experimental stuff.

Edge is a wizard, and Adam said in an interview a few months back how the band would probably have to go in a new direction on this next record.

And then whoever vetoed songs like Mercy, Smile, and Fast Cars, ductape..
 
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